Spirit of Fire
by NightSky98
Summary: Kasai Uzumaki has always done her best to take care of her twin. She never really thought she would make a good ninja or that she would be anyone worthwhile. Follow her as she discovers how wrong she was, makes new bonds, and maybe even falls in love.
1. Prologue

Prologue

A petite child with red streaked blonde hair ran through the village. She had gotten a small bit of money and was going to take her brother to his favorite place to eat, Ichiraku Ramen. Deep blue eyes sparkled in excitement despite the whispers and looks directed her way. She bolted up the stairs to their small apartment and burst in. Naruto looked up at her from where he was laying on the floor. "Oi, I have money so let's go eat," she gave him a small smile.

He just stared at her for a bit dully. Kasai sighed and headed to where he was laying. "Ne, Naru, come here," she sat down and crossed her legs.

After a moment Naruto laid his head on her lap. Kasai lazily ran her fingers through his spikey hair, and didn't say anything when tears started to hit her skin. They sat there for an hour with Naruto crying and Kasai comforting him as best she could. Something two five-year-olds shouldn't have to do. Finally, Naruto's tears stopped and he sat up. His eyes were red, puffy, and raw. Standing, Kasai went to the bathroom and wet a washcloth. She carefully covered his eyes with it and leaned her shoulder against his. "Naruto, I'm giving you a job," he tilted his head a bit to show he was listening. "From now on you have to be my sunshine. I want to always see you smiling. Your smile makes everything better. Don't let anyone bring you down, they're just jealous of how awesome you are."

He was quiet for a bit, before a beaming smile split his face. "Believe it!" he shouted, giving her a thumbs up.

She couldn't hold in her laughter and he soon joined her. Eventually her laughter turned to giggles. "Thanks, Naru, you're really amazing."

Naruto's big blue eyes sparkled with delight and he kissed her cheek. "Thanks, Kasai."

Together they left their apartment and headed to the best ramen place ever. Teuchi greeted them with a smile and asked them what they wanted. "Pork for me!" Naruto shouted.

"Beef, please," Kasai said in her soft voice.

Teuchi smiled at his two very different customers. They were twins, but their personalities were very different. Naruto was normally loud and smiling, Kasai was more of a silent presence and her smiles were for special people. "So, what's new with my favorite customers?"

"We're starting the academy soon, believe it!" Naruto exclaimed with a sunny smile. "I'm getting closer to being Hokage!"

Frowning, Teuchi turned to face them. "Both of you?" he asked with furrowed brows.

Kasai nodded with her eyes shut. "Mmhmm, I can't let Naruto go by himself now can I?"

His frown deepened and he returned to his cooking. Kasai watched him for a bit before her eyes softened. "Teuchi-jii jii, you don't need to worry about me. Naruto will be there with me."

Teuchi sighed before smiling at the observant little girl. "Alright, Kasai. You know I can't help but worry about my favorite customers."

"Hey, where's Ayame-nee?" Naruto made a show of looking around for the kind brunette.

"She's sick today," Teuchi explained, placing the ramen before the two.

They both frowned at that. "Please let her know that we wish for her returned health," Kasai said.

Together they broke their chopsticks. "Thanks for the food!" the two called together.

Teuchi watched them with a smile and laughed at their antics. They truly were something else.


	2. Chapter 1 The Start of Her Journey

Chapter 1.

Kasai woke up before Naruto as usual, grabbed her clothes, and headed to the bathroom to shower. They had been going to the academy for three months now, and while Kasai did fairly well, Naruto was more focused on getting noticed. He had kept his promise to not cry anymore though. The villagers would get so mad when instead of crying at their abuse, Naruto would give them a challenging smile. Kasai didn't like that they were separated a lot due to kunoichi training, but it could be worse.

Once she got out of the shower she put on her black knee-length shorts, long sleeve dark blue shirt, and blue ninja shoes. She stood on the stool they had made for their bathroom and looked in the mirror. She stared at her big deep blue eyes, chin-length sunny blonde hair with natural dark red streaks in it, and delicate sun kissed features with the same whisker marks her twin had. After brushing her hair and teeth she went to the kitchen and looked in the fridge to see if they had any good food. Wrinkling her nose at the smell of rotten eggs and spoiled milk she shut the door and stuck a note on it telling Naruto not to use it. Sighing, she left the apartment and headed to the market. She knew she could snitch an apple if she was careful. Though if she got caught Hokage-jii jii would no doubt give her another long-winded lecture.

A shadow passed over her and she almost facepalmed. "Stupid Jii jii," she grumbled, "I don't need any stupid Anbu watching me, " she raised her voice a bit. "So go away!"

Kasai could almost feel their snickers at her misfortune. Her face turned into a pout and a small blush dusted her cheeks. Once she reached town, her face turned serene. Naruto smiled and laughed it off; she acted like she didn't even notice. At 5:30, not a lot of people were out, but the ones that were wasted no time in glaring at her and whispering about her. As she headed through the market she carefully watched the fruit stands, waiting for one of the vendors to be preoccupied. There! The lady was turned around to grab another crate. She quickly snatched an apple and began to walk away when she heard the lady let out a shout of surprise. Kasai turned to see her falling and hesitated for just a second before grabbing her hand and helping to steady her. Once the lady recovered she opened her mouth to thank the person who helped her until she saw who it was. She faltered and Kasai steeled herself. After a minute the lady simply nodded her thanks with a tense face and returned to her business. Kasai stared for a moment longer before turning and walking away. She headed into the surrounding forest and calmly walked to the training spot she had found a few weeks ago. "No one comes here, Anbu-san. You can come out," Kasai said quietly.

After a moment of nothing she sighed. The girl wouldn't admit it, but she was getting really lonely without her twin. She spun around at the sound of a snapping branch only to see an Anbu behind her. "Weasel," she said softly with a small smile on her face.

He nodded at her and walked silently towards her. Kasai watched him hesitantly, body tensed to run out of habit despite knowing he wouldn't hurt her. He was the only other person here so he would talk with her and help her a bit. "You shouldn't have stolen that apple," he said disapprovingly.

Blue eyes pierced his mask. "Survival," she said after a bit and turned away from him.

She stared blankly ahead for a bit before sighing. Naruto wasn't the only one who kept getting kicked out of class after all. She had only been going to the academy for three months and she was wondering if she was even cut out for this. She was always told that kunoichi were more assist than combat, and Kasai wasn't like that. She didn't have anyone she could talk to who wouldn't jeer at her and tell her she was useless. "What's wrong?" Weasel asked the child who was still frozen in deep thought.

"Weasel-san… do you think that I can really become a kunoichi? Or should I give up?" Kasai asked, making sure her face was carefully blank.

The Anbu didn't answer for a time and Kasai's heart sank, thinking this was the answer. A small flash of defiance sparked in her and she whipped around. Her leg lashed out before she could realize what she was doing. A strong hand caught her leg and she blushed in disappointment of her actions. Unknown to Kasai, underneath the mask a grin was splitting the Anbu's normally emotionless face. "I think you'll do just fine."

A beaming smile spread across Kasai's face and she tackle hugged the Anbu. "Thank you!" she exclaimed, face glowing with happiness.

"Now, get to training," he said gruffly.

Kasai poked her tongue out at him before scurrying away to stretch. After that she ran three laps around the clearing, did twenty pushups, twenty sit-ups, forty jumping jacks, and forty squats. After that she turned to the targets she had put up and threw kunai and shuriken. A bunch missed, but three hit the target. She frowned and collected them. Instead of throwing a bunch like she'd been doing, she decided to just try throwing them one at a time to get the hang of it. Why she didn't think of this earlier she would never know. This continued for a while until Weasel spoke up. "You need to leave for the academy, Kasai."

She turned to look at him and nodded before collecting her weapons and storing them away. "Bye, Weasel!" she called before running towards the academy.

Kasai carefully avoided being in open places as much as possible and it was due to this that the events that changed her life occurred. She was cutting through an alley when she saw them. A group of people was surrounding something. Kasai was going to continue on her way except that she heard a pained groan. She stopped and glanced back trying to see who they were surrounding. "Stupid Uchiha, thinking they're oh so great. Well you're not so great now are you?" one of the men said as they kicked the person.

Cerulean blue eyes narrowed in annoyance at the people. Why were they so cruel? Did they have to always have someone to take their anger out on? Taking a deep breath Kasai squared her shoulders and called out. "Hey, why don't you jerk wads back off? I mean, beating up on someone who's defenseless seems pretty cowardly to me."

When they turned she gave them a cocky grin and stuck her tongue out. "It's the demon brat," she heard one of them say causing her eyes to narrow.

"Kid, get out of here," a weak voice called out.

Kasai blinked in surprise before her cocky grin turned into a soft smile. "Sorry, sir, but my brother's going to be taking care of this whole village one day. I have to help him out until then."

The dark haired man stared in wide-eyed surprise at the girl watched the men approach her. His onyx eyes flickered to the wound in his side. It was the reason he hadn't fought back. He had given up on this village and then here comes a little girl who's saying she was going to take care of an Uchiha. A spark lit in him and his eyes turned red with three tomoe around the pupil. He blurred forward, swooping the little girl into his arms and leaping up onto the roofs. He glanced down before getting them a small distance away. The child in his arms blinked up at him and then stared in surprise at his eyes. "You're a ninja?" she asked to which he nodded. "Cool," she said simply making a chuckle escape the Uchiha.

"That's all you have to say?" he questioned, amused by her lack of care.

"There are lots of ninja in our village and I've met enough to just not care. One day my brother and I will be ninja, too. I can't be too amazed," she explained matter-of-factly.

"You're a student at the ninja academy?" it wasn't very surprising if he was honest, a lot of children attended the academy.

"Yep," Kasai said with a nod. "My brother's gonna be Hokage."

The Uchiha actually stumbled at the bored voice she said it in. Like it had already been decided and it was old news. "That's a large claim, kiddo."

"Not really 'cause it's gonna happen," Kasai responded.

He chuckled. "What's your name, girl?"

Kasai immediately turned wary now realizing that he didn't know who she was. "Kasai. Kasai Uzumaki."

Onyx eyes widened in surprise at that briefly before returning to normal. "Well, I'm Ayumo Uchiha. Seems like we're both outcasts, huh?"

Kasai calmly met his eyes. "Don't feel sorry for yourself. If you don't want people to look at you one way then make them look at you another. People's minds can change. Sometimes it's easy and other times you have to work your ass off."

Ayumo was starting to get used to the idea that this child was going to surprise him. "That's very wise, Kasai-chan."

"People call me a demon for being born the day of the Kyuubi's attack. It's the same for my brother. My brother is going to be the Hokage so that people will look at him for who he is. What will you do?" at the end of her small speech she grinned.

"What are you going to do?" Ayumo asked, genuinely curious.

Kasai shrugged. "Nothing I guess. I'm only becoming a ninja so my brother isn't alone. And Hokage-jii jii kind of wanted me to."

Ayumo stared at her for calling the Hokage what she had. "So, how long have you been going to the academy?"

"Three months or something like that. There's an Uchiha in my class. His name is Sasuke," Kasai suddenly said.

"Sasuke-sama is in your class?" he asked with a small smile.

Kasai's face scrunched up at the title he added to the boy's name. "Sasuke-san is the top of the class, but I don't see why he should be called Sasuke-sama. He's not that great."

Ayumo chuckled. "Sasuke-sama is from the main family. He's the second son of the clan head. That's why I call him Sasuke-sama."

"But he hasn't earned it," Kasai said after a few minutes of thought. "His dad's the clan head right? What has Sasuke-san done?"

A small grin spread across his face. He decided he fairly liked this child. "I like you," he said after a bit. "If you need any help you come to me. 'Kay, kid?"

Kasai grinned back. "Thanks, Uchiha-san."


	3. Chapter 2 Learning

OH MY GOSH!

I am so happy about those of you who have read, followed, and favorited my story! I was actually in class when I looked and almost fell out of my chair before having a mini spazz attack. Which also might be why I got concerned looks for the rest of that day… Oh well.

I really want to thank TheHobbitShorty (Hobs) who's a very good friend of mine. Her comment sincerely brightened my day. I also want to thank the guests who commented. Comments are always appreciated and it really makes me feel like my writing is somewhat good. I'm really insecure about that so you guys need to know how awesome that makes me feel. :)

For those of you who have read my HalfBlood story I'm still writing it, but I've just kinda become unsure of what to do. I have a ton of ideas but I don't want to completely jack up the Naruto plot (that's what this one's for, hahaha).

I realized I didn't say this in my first chapters, but I do not in anyway own Naruto *steals Tamaki's corner of gloom* If I did I would change a ton of things. Like Itachi wouldn't die and Jiraiya and Tsunade would be getting together. Sorry if that was a spoiler, but I figured almost everyone knew soooo…. Anyways, I sincerely need to apologize for not updating sooner, but I've been really distracted and got pulled away from my writing. I really wanted to get this updated and so that's why it's not longer. From now on I'll try to reach at least 3,000 words/chap. I hope you all enjoy this and continue to comment, follow, and favorite my story.

Chapter 2.

Over the next couple months Kasai became a fairly common face in the Uchiha compound due to her visits to Ayumo. Naruto was often busy trying to get attention during the day so Kasai usually only saw him at night and occasionally for dinner. After Ayumo had found out how the teachers treated Kasai and her brother he took it upon himself to teach Kasai the things the academy teachers wouldn't. Surprisingly Kasai was able to bring some cheer to the compound and many of the older people began to love the brightness the child seemed to exude. Outside the compound Kasai's cheerfulness was forced, but inside she was able to be herself.

One day a boy was heading to the Uchiha training grounds, his hands stuffed in his pockets and long jet black hair that was tied back in a low ponytail gently blowing in the wind. He wasn't expecting anyone to be in his usual training grounds, so when he saw a little girl that he somewhat knew practicing there he was surprised. An Uchiha that he sometimes saw around the compound was watching her. Kasai had just thrown her last shuriken and turned to see what Ayumo had to say when she caught sight of the boy. She blinked in surprise before scuffing her black standard shinobi sandals on the ground and allowing her red tipped blonde bangs to hide her eyes. Ayumo turned and bowed to the boy. "Itachi-sama, I was unaware you were back from your mission."

"I returned early this morning, Ayumo-san," Itachi responded in his normal emotionless voice.

Ayumo's eyes flicked towards Kasai, knowing she hated when people spoke like that. Sure enough, a frown had made its way onto her face. "Uchiha-san, are you Mikoto-san's son?" Kasai suddenly asked.

Itachi's onyx eyes flickered to the young Uzumaki. When he had left for his mission, his parents had never even spoken of the child much less met her, and now that he had come home they seemed at least a little familiar with each other. He took in the child before him. She was wearing a red, loose tank top, black knee-length shorts, and black standard shinobi sandals. Her hair was still the same, but her eyes seemed to be different. It was as if there was a new sparkle there, one that meant her smiles were real and not fake. "I am," he responded after a moment.

"Mikoto-san would like it more if you smiled," Kasai said with her own smile.

Itachi watched her for a moment before nodding. "Thank you."

Kasai rolled her eyes. "I didn't say it for you to say thank you, I said it so that you would listen. Your mother worries about you. You're still young, Uchiha-san. Let the older people worry about things. Enjoy your life," after speaking her wisdom she sat down with her legs crossed and began to meditate.

For once Itachi's emotionless mask was broken and he blinked owlishly at the child. Ayumo was shaking from silent laughter at the heir's completely stunned face. He always found it amusing when Kasai would say something that would stun other people. Even though she was young she was smart and people underestimated her. She might not be completely book smart, but she was more world wise than many adults. "Kasai, you seem to have kunai and shuriken down. We really need to work on your kata, math, and reading," he said, letting Itachi compose himself.

Kasai immediately started pouting. "Do I have to?" she whined.

"All the other students are capable enough in those areas. Your fighting is quite appalling. Your brother can take a hit, that's why he does so well. You, on the other hand, are a girl and not nearly as sturdy. You're small, even for your age, Kasai. If you don't learn how to hold your own you're going to get seriously hurt," Ayumo explained to the still pouting girl.

She sighed and hung her head. "Fine, can we not do it today though?" she pleaded, looking up and giving him puppy eyes.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I suppose it can wait until tomorrow. Is there a reason?" he asked, genuinely curious.

Kasai grinned and stood up. "Naru and I are going to Ichiraku's today because Jii jii said he would take us."

"Hokage-sama is?" Ayumo asked surprised.

"Mmhmm," Kasai replied in the affirmative. "Ah, Ayumo-sensei, do you want to join us?"

Itachi who had silently been watching on the side had decided to leave and come back later in the evening. Just as he turned Ayumo called out to him. "Itachi-sama, I am busy today. Would you please go with Kasai-chan?"

Itachi turned and stared at him in bewilderment. "After all," Ayumo began with a sly grin, "would you really allow a cute, little girl who is Sasuke's age to walk around town all on her own?"

Itachi felt his brow twitch before turning and stalking over to the child in question. Kasai shrunk a bit at the imposing figure before her that was giving her a dark glare with his arms crossed over his chest. Something clicked in her brain at that moment and her lips parted in a small "o" of realization. A small smile graced her face and she stood straight. "Shall we go, Itachi-san?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

He nodded and she led the way after saying goodbye to Ayumo. As they exited the Uchiha compound she glanced up at the boy beside her. "So, I guess that's why I haven't seen you recently, Weasel-san."

Itachi almost stumbled at the casual way she said that. He didn't know how she knew it was him. "How did you know?"

"The way you were standing," Kasai said with a grin.

Itachi nodded and sent a brief glance back to the compound as if to make sure no one was watching. "So, what have you been doing at the Uchiha compound?"

"Training with Ayumo-sensei," she stated the obvious without elaborating making Itachi's eyebrow twitch.

"How did you meet Ayumo-san?" he decided to ask.

Kasai glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Normally Itachi Uchiha was quiet and he wasn't one to ask questions or pry. For him to be taking an interest in this something must be going on. "Ayumo-sensei helped me. He was injured and some villagers were being rude so I stepped in. He ended up saving both of us and offered to teach me the things I wasn't learning at the academy. I really like Ayumo-sensei. Actually, I like a lot of the Uchiha's. They're pretty nice. I wish the village would quit being so prejudiced."

"How do you know that word?" Itachi asked wondering how someone her age had a vocabulary like hers.

"I ask," she said like it was obvious.

They arrived at Ichiraku's and stopped across the street. They could just see the white robes of the Hokage and Naruto's blue sandals kicking around. "Ne, Itachi-san," Kasai grabbed his attention.

Itachi looked down to the girl only to see her bangs shadowing her eyes. "Uzumaki-san?"

"Don't do anything stupid. There are always more ways to do things than you think. Things aren't always what they seem. If you need help you can go to people. Don't shoulder the burden by yourself. Things between your family and the village are strained; I've been able to see that since I've been training with Ayumo-sensei. Don't feel so hopeless, and don't argue 'cause I can see it in your eyes. Your mom has been worried about you, Itachi-san. Maybe you should spend a bit more time at home. You're not expected to be perfect and always away on missions. You're still a kid, even if you don't see yourself that way," with that she raised her hand in farewell and hurried across the street.

Itachi heard when Naruto shouted his greeting and heard the Hokage laughing at his self-proclaimed grandchildren. When he returned home he sat in the kitchen talking with his mother while she cooked dinner. When Fugaku came home he was surprised to see his eldest son seemingly relaxed, and his wife happily chatting with him about her day. That night when Itachi went to bed he fell asleep thinking about what Kasai had said.

* * *

Life continued normally for Kasai. She went to the academy, often got kicked out of class for no reason, went to train with Ayumo, then spent the evening with Naruto. Things changed when she complained to Ayumo about not understanding any of the kunoichi lessons. He had frowned and got a thoughtful look on his face before telling her he would take care of it.

Once school ended Kasai slowly headed to the compound. She hadn't been kicked out of her last class so she was awkwardly walking right behind Sasuke Uchiha. After a while Sasuke stopped and whirled around. "Why are you following me?" he demanded.

Kasai tensed up, not used to talking to people her age. "I'm not following you, Uchiha-san. My sensei is in the Uchiha compound."

He frowned at her. "That's a lame excuse to be following me."

Kasai's eyes narrowed at his unwavering belief that she was following him. "Uchiha-san, if I were attempting to follow you I would most likely be hiding instead of being in plain view. Normally I'm already at the training grounds with Ayumo-sensei when you leave the academy."

Sasuke felt a bit of doubt that the girl was actually following him. He hadn't really seen her in class. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Kasai Uzumaki," she said, unsurprised of him not knowing her.

Sasuke felt his eye twitch at her surname. "Like that dobe?" he asked.

The blonde tilted her head to the side. "I suppose that's something you could call my twin," with that she started walking again, not paying any attention to his stunned expression.

Kasai reached the Uchiha training grounds and hurriedly bowed to her teacher. "Sorry, I rushed here as soon as class ended."

He chuckled and ruffled her hair. "That's alright, chibi," he said, watching cheerfully as the chibi in question fumed.

"It's not my fault I'm short, you meanie!" she exclaimed.

He just laughed loudly in response while walking towards the training dummies. "Alright, I want you to work on the kata we've been using."

Kasai sighed and nodded. She went over the moves, trying to make them as fluid as they could be for about an hour. "That was good, Kasai-chan," Ayumo said smiling slightly when she flopped to the ground dramatically. "Are you done for today?"

Kasai was catching her breath so she shook her head. "No way. If I wanna get better I have to train. I'm still good for some more."

His smile broadened at his student's determination. "Well, I think I've found the perfect style for you, Kasai. You're small, and while that can be a disadvantage when it comes to strength, it can be an even greater advantage when it comes to speed. We can start working on that if you would like."

Kasai stood up and shook her arms out. "Let's get started."

Ayumo pulled out a brush and ink. "I'm going to place seals on you that will help this along. Seeing as you're too young for weights this is the best option."

She tilted her head to the side in confusion. "What are they?" she asked.

"Resistant seals. They work similarly to weights, but without the damage to your growth. You are not allowed to remove them, only I can adjust them. Once you get used to them I'll increase the resistance. Ready?"

Kasai thought it over briefly, weighing the benefits. "Yes, Ayumo-sensei," she said cheerfully.

He drew the seals on her wrists and ankles carefully. Once he finished she examined them carefully. Kasai stared at them in confusion, unable to decipher them. "What language is that?" she questioned causing Ayumo to chuckle.

"It's not really a language. It's a ninja art. The Fourth Hokage actually mastered it. He was famous for his fuinjutsu," Ayumo explained to his curious pupil.

He watched the way her eyes examined it, saw that spark in her eyes. That was the spark that he had been looking for. That spark that said she wanted this for her. He chuckled softly, realizing he would need to start researching fuinjutsu. "Alright, test it out, brat."

Kasai took a few steps and frowned. "This is weird, sensei. I'm going to get killed in taijutsu."

Ayumo just laughed at his pupil. Both were unaware that a certain old man was watching them in a crystal ball. He chuckled and bit his pipe, happy to see his granddaughter so happy.


End file.
